Chapter 57
Luck must be in the air because Lucy and Gray are able to leave the mall without seeing any paparazzi. At least his surprise won't be blown all because people want to know what Lucy is up to in her day to day life.
Since the duo drove separately, she is able to swing by the Dragneel's home afterwards. On her way over, she notices all of the community yard sale signs. It looks like the Dragneels will be missing out on the neighborhood event that will be taking place for three days. The first day doesn't start until Thursday, and it'll be over before they get back on Saturday.
She parks her car on the driveway and strolls up to the front door, bagged lunch and house key in hand. She knows the garage code, but rather than waiting Lucy steps inside the house and locks the deadbolt behind her. "Happy!" she calls out. "Carla!"
True to being his talkative self, Happy is meowing up a storm when he trots down the hallway. He snakes around her legs, demanding attention with gentle headbutts.
She laughs at his actions. "Give me a second to get comfortable and then I'll pet you as much as you want." While Lucy walks into the kitchen, she has to be careful about not tripping over Happy.
Ever the lady, Carla is sitting on the edge of the island and cleaning herself with a paw.
"Hello, Carla," Lucy greets.
She stops cleaning for a moment before resuming.
Before eating her own food, Lucy checks on the cats' food and water. There is one food bowl and two water dishes. "Looks like you two need more water," she comments.
There is a water pitcher by the sink that is used to refill the dishes. It is easier to use rather than moving the dishes to the sink and moving them back without spilling water. After Lucy fills both dishes, Happy drinks from one of them.
With him being distracted, Lucy takes her lunch out of the bag and carries it into the family room. After sitting down, she turns on the television and flips through the channels. Even though she has the cats as company, she wants to hear other noises. She doesn't like quiet houses. The silence drives her crazy.
That is why she listens to music while she writes. At the same time, it helps her focus and not feel alone.
Happy promptly jumps up onto the couch to curl up on Lucy's left side. He is purring up a storm already.
Her left hand strokes his fur while her other one uses the remote to flip through the stations. When she finds one that she likes, she starts eating her takeout Italian spaghetti. It is still very warm.
Lucy looks down at Happy who is on his back. "Are you excited for Natsu to come back?" she asks.
He keeps on purring.
"Me, too." Then she glances over to find Carla padding her way over to the couch. "And are you, Miss Carla, excited for Wendy to come back?"
She meows in reply.
"Me, too." Lucy backs at the television. "Saturday can't come soon enough."
When an idea comes to mind, she takes out her phone and sends photos of the cats to Natsu and Wendy using Snapchat. She figures that they will like seeing how their pets are doing.
x-X-x
A couple of hours later, Lucy is back in her car and driving on the highway. When her phone starts ringing from the cup holder, she turns down the volume of the radio before answering. "Hey, Yukino," she greats, knowing the caller because of who's faced popped up.
"How's it going, Miss Writer?" The smile is heard in her voice.
"Oh, you know me," Lucy chuckles. "Still writing. Still trying to figure out which work to go for."
She laughs. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Because you know me." Lucy realizes that her exit is coming up. Signaling to get over in the right most lane, she checks her surroundings before merging. She makes the change with ease.
"Well, that's true. And because I'm your assistant. And because we're friends. Shall I go on?"
"I'm sure the list just gets longer. Anyways, why did you call?"
"As your assistant, I was calling to check on your progress." Yukino answers. "I know you like having a personal deadline when it comes to your writing. In this case, the deadline for choosing which work you'll focus on next."
Lucy groans. "There's quite a few I'm working on now, but I have yet to–" She watches things in slow motion.
There is a dark red car ahead of Lucy and a silver van to the left of it. The van is signaling to get over and when it starts merging, it is like the driver is completely unaware that there is a car besides them. "No, no, stop!" Lucy shouts, as if her voice can do anything to prevent the scene.
"What's wrong?" Yukino asks, panic in her voice. She is scared that something is happening to Lucy.
The van hits the car, causing it to dramatically swerve and crash into the wall to the right. It skids and turns before finally coming to a stop. On the other hand, the van keeps going and doesn't slow down in the slightest.
To avoid her car getting involved, Lucy brakes and stops short of the newly damaged vehicle. Others behind her follow suit.
"Lucy!" Yukino shouts on the other end of the line. "Answer me! Are you–"
"I have to go," Lucy says urgently to Yukino. "Car accident. Not me so don't worry. Bye." She hangs up without hearing a response from her friend. Adrenaline is already coursing through her veins. The plate of "LCKY ME" is easy enough to remember. At least a mix of numbers and letters isn't involved. However, the driver won't be so lucky when they are caught. Lucy knows the color of their car and their plate.
Going through with her decision to involve herself, Lucy parks her car and turns on the hazard lights. After checking that she won't get it by a vehicle, she rushes out of her car to check on the driver of the red car. She goes up to the driver side door to find a lone woman inside.
She is slumped over in her chair, strands of her long white hair covering her face.
Lucy tries opening the door with no luck. She wraps a hand against the door since the window is cracked. "Are you all right in there?"
The woman isn't responding. Did she happen to hit her head on something and knock herself out?
Not giving it a second thought, Lucy uses her phone to call for help. She gets connected right away.
x-X-x
Some time later, Lucy is sitting in the waiting area of a hospital. The staff is denying her accesses to the hit driver for obvious reasons. She isn't related or a friend. She is just some stranger. However, Lucy has come to learn that the driver's name is Mirajane Dreyar and she is pregnant.
The police have since questioned Lucy. She told them everything about the hit and run driver. She is a witness to the accident and is on Mirajane's side. The driver of the van has yet to be caught, but she knows their luck will fizzle out.
"Mira," a male voice says to a lady behind the front desk. "I'm here for Mirajane Dreyar, my wife."
Lucy instantly perks up and looks over. She notices the man is quite large. However, she won't let that intimidate her. So she stands up and makes his way over to him. "Excuse me," she calls.
The guy doesn't respond.
So she tries again. "Excuse me, sir."
This time, he turns to face her. With a broad chest, the fierce man looks quite menacing with a lightning bolt shaped scar on his right eye. His short blond hair is slicked back with spikes pointing backwards and a single tuft at the front of his hairline.
"I don't know if they told you," Lucy begins, "but I'm the one who called help for your wife."
He seems a little surprised. "You're Lucy?"
All right, so someone did tell him.
She merely nods.
Much to her surprise and completely catching her off guard, Lucy is lifted off her feet in the form of a hug. The man is absolutely squishing her without hurting her. "You saved my wife!" he gushes. "You saved our baby, too!"
Reality is still settling over Lucy. She is completely limp in his arms.
"Thank you," he says, sounding like he is on the verge of crying.
When she is back on her feet, the man softly smiles. "I'm Laxus. Thank you for what you did for Mira and the baby."
"They both got the help they needed after the accident."
"Have you seen them?"
She shakes her head. "I can't since I'm not family."
"Not family? That's absurd. You saved them!"
She doesn't know about that. She hadn't been one of the people to pull Mirajane from the car.
"Mr. Dreyar," the woman behind the desk says to get his attention.
Both he and Lucy look.
"Would you like to see Mirajane now?" the woman asks. "She is awake and stable."
Laxus slings an arm around Lucy's shoulders. "She's coming with me."
A/N Part 1: Some drama, but this time it isn't happening to Lucy :P And I didn't plan on any of that happening XD I was having some writer's block when Lucy was on the phone with Yukino. Then the car accident happened…
PS. I don't know much about the hospital procedure for this kinda thing. I know some nonfamily members aren't allowed. But since the husband of the patient is giving permission, idk ?
A/N Part 2: Ohayocon 2017 is this coming weekend (13-15 (the 14 also marks my one year engagement :D). Normally I dedicate that time to being with friends and relaxing, so no promises if the update will come out then or the week after!
Jill: I'm happy you think so :D
Guest: Pffffft, nerd? Whaaaaaat? :P
Fairy Tail Lover: Gruvia is always good to have. They'd be my top FT ship if it weren't for NaLu XD And maybe Natsu will have Gray go with him when ring shopping for Lucy :P
